Ultimate Mets Database - Memories of Joe Hietpas

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Memories of
Joe Hietpas

Joe Hietpas
Ultimate Mets Database popularity ranking: 878 of 1252 players

Joseph Carl Hietpas
Born: May 1, 1979 at Appleton, Wis.
Throws: Right Bats: Right
Height: 6.03 Weight: 220

Joe Hietpas was the most popular Ultimate Mets Database daily lookup on February 20, 2007.

First Mets game: October 3, 2004
Last Mets game: October 3, 2004

Share your memories of Joe Hietpas

HERE IS WHAT OTHER METS FANS HAVE TO SAY:

VIBaseball
October 10, 2004
"Who?" I immediately blurted upon seeing him in the all-time roster here. So I investigated.
Joe is the warm body who got called up from Binghamton in mid-September when Vance Wilson was shelved for the season. He made an appearance in the last game of the year.
Will he ever be back? Will he be more obscure than even Joe DePastino? Apparently he's a good defensive catcher and calls a good game, but isn't much with the stick (despite his size). Confirming what I read, a buddy of mine who saw him earlier this year in St. Lucie came away with that impression firsthand.

Phil Thiegou
October 20, 2004
Go figure, the day he joins the team, his first day in the major leagues, he strains his stomach muscles in batting practice. Must be a sign of things to come. Apparently he wasn't that injured where he was serving as bullpen catcher and catching for the pitcher between innings when Piazza or Phillips was putting their gear back on. Plus before the (2004) season series finale against the Expos at Shea, he was signing autographs for fans until the point they had to call him back to the dugout. I guess he was trying to stretch out his 15 minutes. Not to mention he was very nice to all fans, especially to the kids who were screaming for Piazza seconds before, but settled for him. Plus he was talking a bit to some of us fans who knew who he was and was suprised that people knew who he was. He did manage to squeak in his major league debut catching the final inning of the season. I hope he stretches out his 15 minutes as well, or as the above poster said, he will be 2004's Joe DiPostino, after all, they both wore the same number (10).

Mets2Moon
October 20, 2004
I happened to witness Joe Hietpas' Major League Debut catching Fortunato in the last inning of the last game of the season. Pretty unmemorable. He had apparently been with the club for a couple of weeks but suffered a BP-related injury which kept him shelved until that game. Had no idea he was even on the roster until I looked in my program--there he was. Hit something like .208 with 1 HR and only a handful of RBI in A and AA ball. Can't imagine seeing him back, so, yeah, he's probably going to be as memorable as Charlie Greene, Joe DiPastino, Chris Jelic, etc, etc, etc.

Bill Deegan
July 21, 2006
Our very own "Moonlight Graham" from the "Field of Dreams". Played one-half inning defensively and didn't get to bat.

Mookie
June 7, 2007
Met Joe down in Port St. Lucie for spring training and he was the nicest guy there - signed autographs for just about every kid. Great defensive catcher, but has recently converted to a pitcher in the minors and seems to be doing pretty well so far.

Dalkowski110
November 8, 2007
Joe did well as a relief pitcher for St. Lucie in 2007. He's also, to the best of my knowledge, the only knuckleball specialist in the Mets system. Considering knuckleballers age pretty well, we may actually see Joe again, should he decide to keep pitching and thinks he has a shot at the big club!

VIBaseball
May 3, 2009
Looks like Joe reached the end of the line. He was released before this season started. He pitched well at Single-A, not well at Double-A.
But still, he got his entry in the baseball encyclopedias.
I was wondering what nationality Hietpas is. It is Dutch. Most of the people by that name live in Wisconsin, where Joe came from.

Kevin C. Delahanty, MD
May 5, 2009
Gosh. One game in the majors. And no "at bats." I know most of us on the sidelines would kill for the opportunity to stand, in uniform, in a dugout. But to be this close... Shades of Moonlight Graham.

NYB Buff
November 16, 2015
Joe played only one-half inning in the major leagues, but it was a noteworthy one. The top of the ninth of the Mets-Expos game in which he appeared was in the season finale of the Montreal team's last year before moving to Washington. Even with his extremely brief career, Joe can claim that he was the last catcher ever to play against the Montreal Expos.
I understand that he got a law degree and became a real estate attorney. Seems to have moved on to better things.

Alex
June 29, 2023
I remember Joe Hietpas primarily because of the brevity of his Mets career. He is notable not because he was with them so long, but because his time with them was so short. How many non-pitchers have Mets careers of one game, zero at-bats?
Another catcher among the Hietpas mold is Joe DePastino.
The Mets liked this guy, clearly, and his primary purpose was apparently minor league depth—he spent nine seasons, the whole of his professional career, in the Mets system, but hit just .208. I was unaware that he converted to pitching for the final couple seasons. He had a 2.47 mark in 2007, but a 6.34 ERA in 2008.